First Ride and Tree Removal

We rode today!  First time.  The ride starts out on a downhill, which is in the trees, so it's always a little (or a lot) chilly, but today was not too bad.  I ended up carrying part of my wardrobe after it warmed up some.  After returning from the ride, we ate lunch and set out for REI.  Jim's bike saddle had to go, immediately.  He's out installing the new one, the seat posts Trek used are just garbage. They are very difficult to adjust.

The yellow flowers are out in force.  They like it up there.

Here is the always lovely and serene Nine Mile Lake.

Last night there was a slight sunset. 

Tuesday and Wednesday were spent removing a giant Juniper that was encroaching into the path that goes along side of the house.  It couldn't be cut back due to its growth pattern of the inside turning an ugly brown, while the outside was an attractive green.  It was also encroaching on the neighbor's yard.  He did the bulk of the work getting it out, since he has a big chain saw and a really big set of loppers.

First the tree must be limbed.

Then there is debris which must be picked up.  We ended up using our green can and those of three neighbors who had room in theirs.  That was extremely helpful.

 To get the tree out, one must expose the roots, then they can be cut.

The giant loppers were deployed to cut the roots.  It had a lot, and they were big. 

Here is Jim, rocking the tree.  It was still firmly attached to the ground.

Finally, it came out.  There is an irrigation line in the root ball.  Sometime in the past, the root ball assimilated it. 

So, this is what we have now.  The pink flags indicate the location of the ends of the sprinkler line.  We're going to have a sprinkler guy come out Sunday and put in a new section of hose, move the line closer to the edge of the bed, and put in emitters. 

We're putting in three more Boxwoods to go with the ones that are already on the path.  I like them, they're cold hardy, they grow, and I don't have to pick up after them, unlike the wretched Rose of Sharon which drops debris everywhere.

Other than this, I have not too much to say about anything.